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It was the best of teams, it was the worst of teams. The Yankees were a behemoth last year, while the Orioles were the absolute worst team in baseball, but there may be some interesting clubs in between. The Red Sox aren’t quite what they used to be, while the Rays may be serious contenders and the Blue Jays have a team on the rise. Here is a preview of the American League East.
Baltimore Orioles
2019 record: 54-108
2019 pythag: 60-102
2020 ZIPS projection: 21-39
Notable additions: Jose Iglesias, Wade LeBlanc, Tommy Milone, Pat Valaika
Notable losses: Dylan Bundy, Trey Mancini (cancer), Mark Trumbo, Jonathan Villar
The Orioles were god-awful last year, and they’ll be without their best hitter this year as Trey Mancini tries to recover from colon cancer. The Orioles should be the worst team in baseball again this year by a pretty good margin. Presumably there is a light at the end of the tunnel but it is still too far away to see right now.
Orioles projected starting lineup
Pos. | Hitter | BA | OBA | SLG | PA | HR | rWAR |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pos. | Hitter | BA | OBA | SLG | PA | HR | rWAR |
CF | Austin Hays | .309 | .373 | .574 | 75 | 4 | 0.7 |
SS | Jose Iglesias | .288 | .318 | .407 | 530 | 11 | 1.4 |
LF | Anthony Santander | .261 | .297 | .476 | 405 | 20 | 1.4 |
DH | Renato Nunez | .244 | .311 | .460 | 599 | 31 | 0.4 |
1B | Chris Davis | .179 | .276 | .326 | 352 | 12 | -1.2 |
2B | Hanser Alberto | .305 | .329 | .422 | 550 | 12 | 2.9 |
3B | Rio Ruiz | .232 | .306 | .376 | 413 | 12 | -0.2 |
C | Pedro Severino | .249 | .310 | .420 | 341 | 13 | 1.0 |
RF | DJ Stewart | .238 | .317 | .381 | 142 | 4 | -0.4 |
Bench | Hitter | BA | OBA | SLG | PA | HR | rWAR |
C | Chance Sisco | .210 | .333 | .395 | 198 | 8 | 0.0 |
IF | Pat Valaika | .190 | .256 | .316 | 86 | 1 | -0.6 |
IF | Steve Wilkerson | .225 | .286 | .383 | 361 | 10 | -0.8 |
OF | Dwight Smith, Jr. | .241 | .297 | .412 | 392 | 13 | -0.8 |
OF | Cedric Mullins | .094 | .181 | .156 | 74 | 0 | -0.7 |
Orioles projected pitching staff
Pit | Pitcher | ERA | FIP | IP | K/9 | BB/9 | WAR |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pit | Pitcher | ERA | FIP | IP | K/9 | BB/9 | WAR |
LHP | John Means | 3.60 | 4.41 | 155.0 | 7.0 | 2.2 | 5.0 |
RHP | Alex Cobb | 10.95 | 11.89 | 12.1 | 5.8 | 1.5 | -0.4 |
RHP | Wade LeBlanc | 5.71 | 5.49 | 121.1 | 6.8 | 2.3 | 0.3 |
RHP | Asher Wojciechowski | 4.92 | 5.30 | 82.1 | 8.7 | 3.1 | 1.5 |
LHP | Tommy Milone | 4.76 | 5.00 | 111.2 | 7.6 | 1.9 | 1.5 |
Pit | Bullpen | ERA | FIP | IP | K/9 | BB/9 | WAR |
RHP | Mychal Givens | 4.57 | 4.5 | 63.0 | 12.3 | 3.7 | 0.7 |
LHP | Richard Bleier | 5.37 | 4.19 | 55.1 | 4.9 | 1.3 | 0.4 |
RHP | Hunter Harvey | 1.42 | 3.69 | 6.1 | 15.6 | 5.7 | 0.3 |
RHP | Miguel Castro | 4.66 | 4.73 | 73.1 | 8.7 | 5.0 | 0.7 |
RHP | Shawn Armstrong | 5.74 | 4.54 | 58.0 | 9.8 | 4.5 | 0.1 |
LHP | Paul Fry | 5.34 | 4.71 | 57.1 | 8.6 | 4.6 | -0.1 |
Boston Red Sox
2019 record: 84-78
2019 pythag: 87-75
2020 ZIPS projection: 31-29
Notable additions: Austin Brice, Yairo Munoz, Jose Peraza, Martin Perez, Kevin Pillar, Kevin Plawecki, Alex Verdugo
Notable losses: Mookie Betts, Andrew Cashner, Brock Holt, Sandy Leon, Steve Pearce, Rick Porcello, David Price
The Red Sox may not win a division title this year, but they can at least raise a “we got under the luxury tax threshold in 2020” banner. The team dealt Mookie Betts to the Dodgers in order to move his salary and half of the remaining amount of David Price’s $96 million contract (which has been further reduced with the shortened season). They still have some very talented hitters who could be in MVP consideration like Rafael Devers and Xander Bogaerts, but the pitching staff looks like a mess with Chris Sale out for the year after Tommy John surgery, Eduardo Rodriguez out after a COVID-19 positive test, and free agent Collin McHugh deciding to opt out after his arm didn’t respond this summer.
Red Sox projected starting lineup
Pos. | Hitter | BA | OBA | SLG | PA | HR | rWAR |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pos. | Hitter | BA | OBA | SLG | PA | HR | rWAR |
LF | Andrew Benintendi | .266 | .343 | .431 | 615 | 13 | 1.8 |
3B | Rafael Devers | .311 | .361 | .555 | 702 | 32 | 4.9 |
SS | Xander Bogaerts | .309 | .384 | .555 | 698 | 33 | 5.9 |
DH | J.D. Martinez | .304 | .383 | .557 | 657 | 36 | 3.4 |
1B | Mitch Moreland | .252 | .328 | .507 | 335 | 19 | 1.2 |
C | Christian Vazquez | .276 | .320 | .477 | 521 | 23 | 2.3 |
RF | Alex Verdugo | .294 | .342 | .475 | 377 | 12 | 3.2 |
2B | Jose Peraza | .239 | .285 | .346 | 403 | 6 | -0.9 |
CF | Jackie Bradley, Jr. | .225 | .317 | .421 | 567 | 21 | 1.9 |
Bench | Hitter | BA | OBA | SLG | PA | HR | rWAR |
C | Kevin Plawecki | .222 | .287 | .342 | 174 | 3 | -0.1 |
IF | Michael Chavis | .254 | .322 | .444 | 382 | 18 | 0.6 |
IF | Tzu-Wei Lin | .200 | .273 | .300 | 22 | 0 | 0.0 |
IF | Yairo Munoz | .267 | .298 | .355 | 181 | 2 | -0.6 |
OF | Kevin Pillar | .259 | .287 | .432 | 645 | 21 | 0.9 |
Red Sox projected pitching staff
Pit | Pitcher | ERA | FIP | IP | K/9 | BB/9 | WAR |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pit | Pitcher | ERA | FIP | IP | K/9 | BB/9 | WAR |
RHP | Nathan Eovaldi | 5.99 | 5.90 | 67.2 | 9.3 | 4.7 | 0.0 |
LHP | Eduardo Rodriguez | 3.81 | 3.86 | 203.1 | 9.4 | 3.3 | 5.9 |
LHP | Martin Perez | 5.12 | 4.66 | 165.1 | 7.3 | 3.6 | 0.2 |
RHP | Ryan Weber | 5.09 | 4.20 | 40.2 | 6.4 | 1.8 | 0.2 |
LHP | Brian Johnson | 6.02 | 5.32 | 40.1 | 6.9 | 5.1 | -0.2 |
Pit | Bullpen | ERA | FIP | IP | K/9 | BB/9 | WAR |
RHP | Brandon Workman | 1.88 | 2.46 | 71.2 | 13.1 | 5.7 | 3.2 |
RHP | Matt Barnes | 3.78 | 3.28 | 64.1 | 15.4 | 5.3 | 1.3 |
RHP | Heath Hembree | 3.86 | 4.78 | 39.2 | 10.4 | 4.1 | 0.5 |
RHP | Ryan Brasier | 4.85 | 4.42 | 55.2 | 9.9 | 3.4 | 0.2 |
LHP | Josh Taylor | 3.04 | 3.11 | 47.1 | 11.8 | 3.0 | -0.2 |
RHP | Austin Brice | 3.43 | 4.87 | 44.2 | 9.3 | 3.6 | 0.4 |
New York Yankees
2019 record: 103-59
2019 pythag: 99-63
2020 ZIPS projection: 34-26
Notable additions: Gerrit Cole
Notable losses: Dellin Betances, Greg Bird, Jacoby Ellsbury, Edwin Encarnacion, Didi Gregorius, Austin Romine, CC Sabathia
The Yankees won 103 games last year, added the best free agent starting pitcher in Gerrit Cole, and get their top two sluggers back with the return of Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton. The Bronx Bombers lived up to their nickname last year by leading the league with 943 runs, and they could be even better this year if they are healthy. Aroldis Chapman leads a deep bullpen although he is currently out with a positive COVID-19 test.
Yankees projected starting lineup
Pos. | Hitter | BA | OBA | SLG | PA | HR | rWAR |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pos. | Hitter | BA | OBA | SLG | PA | HR | rWAR |
2B | DJ LeMahieu | .327 | .375 | .518 | 655 | 26 | 5.9 |
RF | Aaron Judge | .272 | .381 | .540 | 447 | 27 | 5.5 |
SS | Gleyber Torres | .278 | .337 | .535 | 604 | 38 | 3.1 |
DH | Giancarlo Stanton | .288 | .403 | .492 | 72 | 3 | 0.4 |
CF | Aaron Hicks | .235 | .325 | .443 | 255 | 12 | 1.3 |
C | Gary Sanchez | .232 | .316 | .525 | 446 | 34 | 3.1 |
1B | Luke Voit | .263 | .378 | .464 | 510 | 21 | 1.4 |
LF | Brett Gardner | .251 | .325 | .503 | 550 | 28 | 4.1 |
3B | Gio Urshela | .314 | .355 | .534 | 476 | 21 | 3.9 |
Bench | Hitter | BA | OBA | SLG | PA | HR | rWAR |
C | Kyle Higashioka | .214 | .211 | .464 | 57 | 3 | 0 |
IF | Miguel Andujar | .128 | .143 | .128 | 49 | 0 | -1.2 |
IF | Tyler Wade | .245 | .330 | .362 | 108 | 2 | 0.3 |
OF | Clint Frazier | .267 | .317 | .489 | 246 | 12 | 0.1 |
OF | Mike Tauchman | .277 | .361 | .504 | 296 | 13 | 3.8 |
Yankees projected pitching staff
Pit | Pitcher | ERA | FIP | IP | K/9 | BB/9 | WAR |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pit | Pitcher | ERA | FIP | IP | K/9 | BB/9 | WAR |
RHP | Gerrit Cole | 2.50 | 2.64 | 212.1 | 13.8 | 2.0 | 4.6 |
LHP | James Paxton | 3.82 | 3.86 | 150.2 | 11.1 | 3.3 | 2.3 |
RHP | Masahiro Tanaka | 4.45 | 4.27 | 182.0 | 7.4 | 2.0 | 1.9 |
LHP | J.A. Happ | 4.91 | 5.22 | 161.1 | 7.8 | 2.7 | 0.0 |
LHP | Jordan Montgomery | 6.75 | 3.96 | 4.0 | 11.3 | 0.0 | -0.1 |
Pit | Bullpen | ERA | FIP | IP | K/9 | BB/9 | WAR |
LHP | Aroldis Chapman | 2.21 | 2.28 | 57.0 | 13.4 | 3.9 | 1.6 |
LHP | Zack Britton | 1.91 | 3.74 | 61.1 | 7.8 | 4.7 | 2.5 |
RHP | Adam Ottavino | 1.90 | 3.44 | 66.1 | 11.9 | 5.4 | 2.3 |
RHP | Tommy Kahnle | 3.67 | 3.33 | 61.1 | 12.9 | 2.9 | 0.8 |
RHP | Chad Green | 4.17 | 3.34 | 69.0 | 12.8 | 2.5 | 0.4 |
RHP | Jonathan Holder | 6.31 | 4.45 | 41.1 | 10.0 | 2.4 | -0.9 |
Tampa Bay Rays
2019 record: 96-66
2019 pythag: 93-69
2020 ZIPS projection: 33-27
Notable additions: Manuel Margot, Jose Martinez, Hunter Renfroe, Yoshi Tsutsugo
Notable losses: Jesus Aguilar, Travis d’Arnaud, Avisail Garcia, Guillermo Heredia, Emilio Pagan, Tommy Pham, Austin Pruitt, Eric Sogard
The Rays had a very interesting off-season where they revamped their outfield and added Japanese first baseman/third baseman/left fielder Yoshi Tsutsugo, who hit .272/.388/.511 with 29 home runs for Yokohama last year. Expect the Rays to be creative with their pitching staff, which will be anchored by Blake Snell and Charlie Morton, and could add top prospect Brendan McKay during the year.
Rays projected starting lineup
Pos. | Hitter | BA | OBA | SLG | PA | HR | rWAR |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pos. | Hitter | BA | OBA | SLG | PA | HR | rWAR |
DH | Yoshi Tsutsugo | Played in Japan | |||||
LF | Austin Meadows | .291 | .364 | .558 | 591 | 33 | 4.0 |
3B | Yandy Diaz | .267 | .340 | .476 | 347 | 14 | 1.5 |
1B | Ji-Man Choi | .261 | .363 | .459 | 487 | 19 | 2.0 |
RF | Hunter Renfroe | .216 | .289 | .489 | 440 | 33 | 2.7 |
2B | Brandon Lowe | .270 | .336 | .514 | 327 | 17 | 2.6 |
SS | Willy Adames | .254 | .317 | .418 | 584 | 20 | 4.2 |
CF | Kevin Kiermaier | .228 | .278 | .398 | 480 | 14 | 2.4 |
CF | Mike Zunino | .165 | .232 | .312 | 289 | 9 | -0.2 |
Bench | Hitter | BA | OBA | SLG | PA | HR | rWAR |
C | Michael Perez | .217 | .345 | .326 | 55 | 0 | 0.3 |
IF | Daniel Robertson | .213 | .312 | .295 | 237 | 2 | -0.3 |
IF | Joey Wendle | .231 | .293 | .340 | 263 | 3 | 0.8 |
OF | Manuel Margot | .234 | .304 | .387 | 441 | 12 | 1.8 |
OF | Jose Martinez | .269 | .340 | .410 | 373 | 10 | -0.4 |
Rays projected pitching staff
Pit | Pitcher | ERA | FIP | IP | K/9 | BB/9 | WAR |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pit | Pitcher | ERA | FIP | IP | K/9 | BB/9 | WAR |
RHP | Charlie Morton | 3.05 | 2.81 | 194.2 | 11.1 | 2.6 | 4.9 |
LHP | Blake Snell | 4.29 | 3.32 | 107.0 | 12.4 | 3.4 | 1.4 |
LHP | Ryan Yarbrough | 4.13 | 3.55 | 141.2 | 7.4 | 1.3 | 1.3 |
RHP | Tyler Glasnow | 1.78 | 2.26 | 60.2 | 11.3 | 2.1 | 2.5 |
RHP | Trevor Richards | 4.06 | 4.51 | 135.1 | 8.4 | 3.7 | 1.8 |
Pit | Bullpen | ERA | FIP | IP | K/9 | BB/9 | WAR |
RHP | Nick Anderson | 3.32 | 2.35 | 65.0 | 15.2 | 2.5 | 1.4 |
RHP | Diego Castillo | 3.41 | 3.72 | 68.2 | 10.6 | 3.4 | 0.5 |
LHP | Jose Alvarado | 4.80 | 4.18 | 30.0 | 11.7 | 8.1 | -0.3 |
RHP | Chaz Roe | 4.06 | 3.31 | 51.0 | 11.5 | 5.5 | 0.0 |
RHP | Yonny Chirinos | 3.85 | 4.44 | 133.1 | 7.7 | 1.9 | 2.1 |
RHP | Oliver Drake | 3.21 | 3.87 | 56.0 | 11.3 | 3.1 | 1.2 |
Toronto Blue Jays
2019 record: 67-95
2019 pythag: 71-91
2020 ZIPS projection: 27-33
Notable additions: Chase Anderson, Anthony Bass, Joe Panik, Tanner Roark, Hyun-Jin Ryu, Travis Shaw
Notable losses: Clay Buchholz, Derek Law, Luke Maile, Justin Smoak
The Blue Jays have one of the best collection of young hitters in the league, led by Vladimir Guerrero, Jr. They sought to upgrade their pitching staff by adding free agent Hyun-Jin Ryu Tanner Roark, and trading for Chase Anderson, as well as bringing relievers Shun Yamaguchi and Rafael Dolis from Japan. The biggest question is - where will this team play?
Blue Jays projected starting lineup
Pos. | Hitter | BA | OBA | SLG | PA | HR | rWAR |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pos. | Hitter | BA | OBA | SLG | PA | HR | rWAR |
SS | Bo Bichette | .311 | .358 | .571 | 212 | 11 | 2.3 |
2B | Cavan Biggio | .234 | .364 | .429 | 430 | 16 | 2.9 |
LF | Lourdes Gurriel, Jr. | .277 | .327 | .541 | 343 | 20 | 1.7 |
1B | Vladimir Guerrero, Jr. | .272 | .339 | .433 | 514 | 15 | 1.5 |
3B | Travis Shaw | .157 | .281 | .270 | 270 | 7 | -1.2 |
CF | Randal Grichuk | ..232 | .280 | .457 | 628 | 31 | 0.4 |
RF | Teoscar Hernandez | .230 | .306 | .472 | 464 | 26 | 1.2 |
DH | Rowdy Tellez | .227 | .293 | .449 | 409 | 21 | 0.0 |
C | Danny Jansen | .207 | .279 | .360 | 384 | 13 | 1.1 |
Bench | Hitter | BA | OBA | SLG | PA | HR | rWAR |
C | Reese McGuire | .299 | .346 | .526 | 105 | 5 | 1.0 |
2B | Joe Panik | .244 | .315 | .336 | 491 | 5 | -0.6 |
IF | Brandon Drury | .218 | .262 | .380 | 447 | 15 | -1.2 |
OF | Anthony Alford | .179 | .233 | .286 | 30 | 1 | -0.2 |
OF | Derek Fisher | .185 | .287 | .370 | 167 | 7 | -0.1 |
Blue Jays projected pitching staff
Pit | Pitcher | ERA | FIP | IP | K/9 | BB/9 | WAR |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pit | Pitcher | ERA | FIP | IP | K/9 | BB/9 | WAR |
LHP | Hyun-Jin Ryu | 2.32 | 3.10 | 182.2 | 8.0 | 1.2 | 4.8 |
RHP | Tanner Roark | 4.35 | 4.67 | 165.1 | 8.6 | 2.8 | 2.0 |
RHP | Matt Shoemaker | 1.57 | 3.95 | 28.2 | 7.5 | 2.8 | 1.2 |
RHP | Trent Thornton | 4.84 | 4.59 | 154.1 | 8.7 | 3.6 | 1.7 |
RHP | Chase Anderson | 4.21 | 4.83 | 139.0 | 8.0 | 3.2 | 1.8 |
Pit | Bullpen | ERA | FIP | IP | K/9 | BB/9 | WAR |
RHP | Ken Giles | 1.87 | 2.27 | 53.0 | 14.1 | 2.9 | 2.5 |
RHP | Anthony Bass | 3.56 | 3.90 | 48.0 | 8.1 | 3.2 | 1.0 |
RHP | Shun Yamaguchi | Played in Japan | |||||
RHP | Jordan Romero | 7.63 | 6.41 | 15.1 | 12.3 | 5.3 | -0.4 |
RHP | Thomas Pannone | 6.16 | 5.16 | 73.0 | 8.5 | 3.8 | -0.3 |
RHP | Sam Gaviglio | 4.61 | 4.64 | 95.2 | 8.3 | 2.1 | 0.7 |
Poll
Who will win the American League East?
This poll is closed
-
8%
Baltimore Orioles
-
0%
Boston Red Sox
-
52%
New York Yankees
-
34%
Tampa Bay Rays
-
4%
Toronto Blue Jays